Former O.C. CEO involved in fatal crash

Former Orange County CEO Thomas Mauk was involved in a crash over the weekend in Diamond Bar that killed two Anaheim residents, the California Highway Patrol said.

About 9:10 p.m. Sunday, Mauk, 69, was driving a 2008 Cadillac Escalade at an unknown speed when he rear-ended a disabled 2006 Toyota Prius that was blocking the No. 3 lane on the southbound 57 north of Pathfinder Road, the CHP said. Denise Mauk, 59, was a passenger.

Anubhai Patel, 66, who the CHP identified as the driver of the Prius, was pronounced dead at 12:22 a.m. Monday at UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange, Supervising Deputy Coroner Kelly Keyes said.

Shardaben Anubhai Patel, 67, who was identified as the passenger, was pronounced dead at the scene Sunday at 9:15 p.m., said Craig Harvey of the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office.

No arrests were made, the CHP said.

The Patels, who were wearing their seat belts, suffered traumatic brain injuries, the CHP said.

Denise Mauk was taken to UCI Medical Center, while Thomas Mauk, who lives in Whittier, was taken to another hospital, CHP Officer Saul Gomez said. Both were wearing seat belts.

As of now, it is unknown if alcohol was a factor in the crash, and it is unclear why or how long the Prius was stalled in the traffic lane, Gomez said.

Mauk served as the county's top nonelected executive, overseeing 17,000 employees, from 2004 until last year. He retired in August under pressure from members of the Board of Supervisors amid revelations of the county's botched initial handling of sexual-abuse allegations against former OC Public Works executive Carlos Bustamante.

Bustamante was charged in July with 12 felonies stemming from those allegations. He has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting a preliminary hearing.